34. Team Work

He had only one hour to answer these five questions. So, using a simple strategy, he decided to write answers to the questions he was the surest of. For example, the Theory of Balanced Exchange was nothing but the simple laws on which the runes worked.

The caster of the runes must understand the need to keep the flow of Solarium in proportion to the size of the rune they were making. If there was any mismatch, then the rune would break.

Sylvester knew that Bishop Norman would not give him an easy question, and there must be something that the man would use to dismiss his answer as incorrect. So Sylvester wrote everything he knew in detail, including everything he had learned from his observations.

For example, he had noticed that if one's elemental magic is too strong, they need to be careful because they have a higher chance of their rune breaking up due to overload.

Then he moved to the following question. It was extremely tricky because the discovery of Runes was never documented, and a dozen great wizards in history tried to take credit for it. So the only answer to this question was to write about all the wizards who claimed.

But instead of writing long paragraphs, he simply made a long table, divided them into name-based parts, and then wrote about each claim. This question was there to waste his time, from what he guessed. He didn't allow that to happen.

'Now what is this Duel Runes casting? I've never read about it.' He wondered, believing it was likely something from the upper classes.

'Is he allowed to give me questions outside of the syllabus?'

He wrote whatever he could come up with. He reckoned he'd have dealt with the man by the time the results get announced and mustn't let him create unnecessary trouble.

This way, he answered all questions except one. Then, when he only had 5 minutes left, he worked on the last question that wasn't just out of the Syllabus but the whole history. There was no subject called Elder Runes because it was a lost knowledge.

So it was apparent that Sylvester didn't know about it other than its name. So, in the end, he just wrote a little hymn to address the great mentor.

♫O' Great Mentor of Runes,

Solis has blessed your brain.

For even lost arts you have gained.♫

♫Bestow upon us this knowledge,

Before you die of old age.♫

♫Let the faith be grateful to your deeds,

You must plant this forbidden knowledge's seeds.

For minds like yours are born once in centuries,

Most others die as retards in unsolved mysteries.♫

♫I hope you are not like those retards.

Lord's Bard sings in best regards.♫

He chuckled as the time was up and put the quill back in the ink bottle. 'I can't believe I've turned into a poet now. Well, Diana used to love my songs. It makes sense, I guess.'

The Archpriest soon collected the papers, and the subsequent examination started. It was for a first-year compulsory subject called Healing. This aimed to give all Deacons the minimum level of knowledge to heal themselves or others in an emergency.

The mentor for this subject was Mother Meredith, a Bright Mother. She was a fair middle-aged woman with a kind personality. Nobody hated her for anything. Even the questions for her subject were easy.

This was a general attitude he had witnessed in his years here. Nobody disrespected or dared to harm a Bright Mother. Even if a Bright Mother goes into a den of thieves alone, she will be respectfully allowed to pass through.

This was because the Church was known to be overprotective of these women as these women were the main force behind spreading the faith with their kind words, selfless healing services, and much more. For them, the Church was ready to burn villages, towns, or even cities to set an example.

It was undoubtedly reassuring to Sylvester as Xavia was one of these Bright Mothers.

Eventually, the Healing examination also ended, and Incantation started. This was not a complex subject for Sylvester as Archpriest Edmund was a truly neutral man in some regards. He didn't show hostility towards Romel either, despite the hostilities between Romel's and Edmund's Kingdoms.

One needed to live under a rock to fail this class. But alas, there were indeed a few who were living under a rock. So overconfident that they didn't bother studying. The results, in the end, would eventually make things clear.

'Alright, last question.'

He finished writing the answer for 'How to use Incantation to use wind element and pull or push objects.' It was telekinesis without anything to do with brain powers.

"Time's up. Proceed with Sir Baldfreak to the indoor arena. He shall test your physical prowesses as there is no written examination for this."

After stretching a bit, he got up and gathered with his friends. "How was it?"

"Easy," Gabriel said.

"I think I did alright." Markus solemnly nodded.

But Felix had dark circles under his eyes and a face that seemed devoid of all happiness. "What am I going to do? My father will kill me for failing this. That Norman bas-... How am I supposed to know about making Elder Runes?"

Sylvester pitied him and patted his shoulder. "I was asked the same question, and even got out of syllabus questions. But, don't worry, his days here are numbered. So focus on the next test."

"Are we going to fight this time too?" Markus wondered.

No one had any idea about it.

But Romel did come across Sylvester along the way and challenged him. "I will be the winner this time."

"There is a quote, the elephant keeps walking as dogs keep barking," Sylvester replied and kept walking towards the arena. His friends laughed heartily at the insult and stayed beside him.

"I wish I had your brain," Felix muttered.

'Kid, you'd die from PTSD alone.'

…

When they arrived at the arena with a grass floor, they found Sir Baldfreak standing before five other Knights with helmets on. They all wore Inquisitor robes and armor and appeared battle-ready.

Before the confusion could take hold, Sir Baldfreak explained. "Listen up, boys. Today you will be tested not just for your fighting skills but also for your leadership abilities. All of you will be divided into six groups and will fight one of these Knights.

"I do not imagine you winning, but I wish to see you doing your best to defeat them. The odds of numbers are in your favor, and you must use them wisely. I shall give you five minutes to organize yourselves into groups. If anyone is left at the end, I will make their groups. Proceed!"

For Sylvester, it was a breeze to form a group as they already numbered four. Finding two more was easy, as most wanted to join them. But in the end, Sylvester selected Willis Leroy, the class' weakest kid, and Augustus Steel, the loner of the class with the high talent of Grand Wizard, who refused to join any group for some reason.

"I will be the leader. Does anyone have objections?" Sylvester started their little briefing.

"You have great talent in fighting, so I agree," Markus responded.

"I hate to accept it, but Markus is right." Felix agreed as well.

The two newcomers were not even asked. This way, their team was ready to fight the enemy. Now all they needed to do was decide the order in which each of the five groups would go.

The way to select the order was reasonably straightforward. They simply threw dice, and all team leaders were supposed to choose a number. The dice will be thrown four times; whichever number comes, they go first.

"Three!" Sylvester selected his number when Sir Baldfreak rolled the dice.

The dice rolled slowly on the grass floor and stopped, showing 5. Then the dice was rolled again, and this time it was 2. Sylvester's number came the third time, and he was satisfied with this position. As long as he was not the first or the last, it was good.

"You five, I need you to observe the matches. Then, I will try to plot a strategy based on the amount of violence we will have to face there." He instructed his team and took the seat at the side.

One Inquisitor Knight walked forwards with his edgeless sword in hand and took off his helmet.

There was no boundary in this fight, and they could use all means possible to battle.

"Fight!" Sir Baldfreak shouted as the overseer.

The group of six Deacons appeared incompatible with each other as they clumsily ran towards the Knight simultaneously instead of using long-range attacks to test the water.

As they ran with a shout, once the Inquisitor Knight started striking them down, real painful screams emerged. After that, the group began to get smaller but slowly, with time, they realized the need for teamwork.

However, a group of 6 boys who had never had any experience in fighting was bound to lose it. The Knight finally started to use more strength. He used the Solarium projection on his sword, making it longer and hotter.

Slash!—With each strike, one Deacon fell.

Then finally, in the 6th strike, the battle ended with the utter loss of the deacons. Some of them were injured to the point they couldn't even walk. They merely cried on the grass in pain, hoping someone would heal them soon.

"Next group, enter!" Sir Baldfreak ordered without any pity.

Now the new group was made of average Deacons. They had also learned the lessons as they were careful with the new Inquisitor Knight. So, first, they used long-range attacks to test their strength. Then they tried to surround their enemy.

However, as soon as they thought they had won, the Inquisitor Knight's sword turned into an Iron Flail. He swung it around his head quickly using his Knight's abilities. It created a sort of storm that imbalanced the Deacons.

Thud!—As soon as the first one fell, the Knight had a path to move around and take others down in 10 minutes. Luckily, he was not as hard on the young Deacons as the first Knight.

"Next group! Come forward!" Sir Baldfreak ordered.

Sylvester took a long breath and stood up. He was slightly nervous but also excited about this activity.

"Remember, keep your ears open and do everything I say. Fighting them is full of uncertainty as we don't know anything about their style. Willis Leroy, you stay at the back and wait for my main signal. You are going to be our game changer." He instructed the boys.

"Sylvester… is that the Knight… we need to fight?" Felix suddenly interrupted and pointed.

As he looked in the same direction, he found their opponent walking up with a smile.

Sylvester's eyes got filled with confusion. "Hmm… So we are to fight her? How? I thought women couldn't be knights."

Where the battle was already deemed full of uncertainty, this was a scenario none had imagined this whole time.

Was she strong? Was she weak? All he felt from her was the emotion of excitement reek.